


I'll be coming slower down

by peculiairyties (ItsAiryBro)



Series: Warm Blood [1]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Fluff, Getting Together, Kita Shinsuke is very sly, Lunch Dates, M/M, Ushijima Wakatoshi is crushing hard, background kurodai - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-01
Updated: 2020-03-01
Packaged: 2021-02-28 07:06:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,530
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22965877
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ItsAiryBro/pseuds/peculiairyties
Summary: Wakatoshi has the biggest crush on Kita. Luckily Kita is there to help him out.
Relationships: Kita Shinsuke/Ushijima Wakatoshi
Series: Warm Blood [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1883368
Comments: 25
Kudos: 158





	I'll be coming slower down

**Author's Note:**

  * For [huiiiii](https://archiveofourown.org/users/huiiiii/gifts).



> Thank you for making me consider this ship Huii I love them so much now 😭

Wakatoshi likes predictable things. He likes the stability that comes with repetition. But mostly, he likes knowing what to expect, because then he can be prepared.

He thinks that’s one of the reasons why he’s drawn to Kita Shinsuke and his predictable nature. In a team that’s as chaotic and wild as a hurricane, Kita is the calm at its heart. He's reliable, and just as fond of routines as he is. With Kita he didn’t have to worry about feeling caught off guard because he knew—at least to some extent—what to expect from him.

Or so he thought. 

Which brings him to one of the many other reasons that he’s attracted to him—his pert, round, perfect little bubble butt. 

The one and the same that’s being flaunted in front of him as Kita bends forward to touch his toes, stretching in preparation for their morning run. Wakatoshi hasn’t ever seen him wear such tiny shorts before, and he has to make a conscious effort to not look when he bends forward again. 

Then Kita stretches sideways and a slim triangle of milky white skin peeks between the waistband of his shorts and the hem of his black tshirt, and Wakatoshi determinedly stares at the rising sun in an effort to wipe those images from his retinas. 

He really had to pull himself together and stop behaving like a pervert. 

“Wakatoshi,” Kita calls out, and he reluctantly turns his eyes to look at him, blinking to clear the white spots in his vision. “Shall we get going?” 

“Yes,” he replies, and they set off at a leisurely pace through the familiar streets of suburban Tokyo. There’s few people and fewer cars at this time of day, and he breathes deeply and evenly, enjoying the crisp morning air. They don’t talk but it’s not something either of them minds; neither of them are the type for small talk anyway. 

As they jog through a park, there’s more people, and he’s uncomfortably aware of eyes and heads turning towards them—toward Kita, to be more specific—who is slowly realising that people are staring. 

“Wakatoshi,” Kita calls out, expression concerned. “I feel like people are staring at me. Is there something in my hair?” 

“No,” Wakatoshi says, and makes a split-second decision before he opens his mouth. “I think it’s the shorts.” 

Kita’s face pulls into a frown. “What’s wrong with my shorts?” 

“They’re… small. They’re really small.” 

Kita stops abruptly to look down at himself, and then twists around to look at his back. “They’re not that bad. Does it look odd?.” 

Wakatoshi tries to keep from swallowing his tongue. _Odd_ wasn’t the word he’d use. He didn’t know what word he _would_ use. ‘Good looking’, maybe. ‘Blood-pressure-heightening’, definitely. “I don’t think so.” 

Kita gives him a little half smile. “Oh well. Let’s just finish this jog.” 

They start back up again, but this time Wakatoshi is more aware of all the people eying Kita with obvious admiration. He wants to ask them to look away. Couldn’t they at least try to be discreet? Kita isn’t the type to get self-conscious, but he still feels annoyed on his behalf. 

“Kita,” he finally says, still facing forward. “Would you like to wear my jacket?” 

“That’s a strange question to ask out of the blue, Wakatoshi,” he responds, sounding rightly confused. “Why are you giving me your jacket?” 

He considers his response for a moment. “I thought perhaps you might be feeling uncomfortable with all the staring.” 

“That’s kind, but I think I’m fine.” 

This time, Wakatoshi is the one that stops. “I insist,” he says, aware that he’s probably stepping past some boundaries as he strips off his windbreaker and hands it over to Kita stubbornly. 

Kita studies his outstretched hand before he flicks his gaze to his face, a slight smile quirking up one corner of his lips. “In that case, thanks.” 

As he pulls on the jacket, Wakatoshi is struck with another damning realization: Kita looks incredibly hot in it, and it covers up the shorts so at first glance it looks like he’s wearing _only_ the jacket. 

Wakatoshi resigns himself to this cruel fate. 

\- 

They manage to complete the jog without anything untoward happening, except that one thing where Kita sniffed the jacket’s collar and said “This smells nice, what cologne is it?”, and Wakatoshi responded with “Thanks it’s my cologne.” 

Kita had merely smiled his Premium Kita Smile™ as Kuroo had taken to calling it, the one where both ends of his mouth curved up slightly and his brows lifted just so, and you could tell he was enjoying whatever he was smiling about. 

So maybe that hadn’t been as bad, or at least Wakatoshi hopes. 

They’re now at practice, but even a whole five hours later, he hasn’t been able to get that smile out of his head. 

Out of the corner of his eyes he watches Kita, entranced by the way a few strands of his pale hair stick straight up after Nishinoya had rustled it in his excitement a few moments prior. His large golden eyes are intent on the notebook in his hands even as Kuroo and Oikawa get into an impromptu shoving match behind him and are just as quickly separated by Sawamura. 

Then his gaze flicks upward, meeting Wakatoshi’s own with laser precision. 

He is so startled he just continues to stare. 

Then Kita’s lips curve upward, just a little, teasing, before he goes back to his notebook. 

Finally, Wakatoshi can look away. 

“So.” Kuroo slinks over to plop beside him on the bench. “You trying to seduce our manager?” 

Wakatoshi frowns at him. “No?” 

“No? Then what was all that about?” Kuroo leers at him, poking him with his elbow. 

He shakes his head. “I don’t understand what you’re talking about.” 

“You know,” Kuroo shrugs. “You guys were practically eye-fucking each other just now.” 

“Leave him alone, Kuroo,” Sawamura cuts in, appearing behind them magically like he had sensors for whenever his boyfriend was causing trouble. 

“I’m not doing anything though!” Kuroo complains. “And besides everyone knows that Toshi-kun has a crush on Kita, I’m just teasing him a little.” 

Oh, Wakatoshi thinks. “Everyone?” 

Sawamura and Kuroo both give him a searching look. 

“Well, not _everyone_ , I guess,” Sawamura says, giving him a reassuring smile. “Some of the more observant ones. I’m pretty sure Oikawa knows, and Akaashi. Me, Kuroo. Aran too, probably.” 

Well, that was certainly a lot of people that knew. “How?” 

Sawamura looks like he sucked on a lemon but is trying to keep a straight face. “Well it’s… kinda obvious…” 

“You stare at him a lot.” Kuroo shrugs. “Like… whenever you’re not focusing on the ball, you’re focusing on Kita. Maybe not _all_ the time, but enough. It’s almost a little bit creepy, but not, because it’s you.” 

Wakatoshi looks down at his hands. “Do you think Kita knows?” 

Sawamura and Kuroo both hum, look at each other, look at Wakatoshi. They shake their heads. 

“We can’t really be sure, with him,” Kuroo says. 

Sawamura nods. “He is definitely _astute._ But I think that if he knows he would say something to you, and since it looks like he hasn’t yet, then maybe he doesn’t know.” 

“I see.” Wakatoshi mulls over their words, but before he can respond, he notices Kita walking toward them, and he straightens, his focus narrowing. 

“Wakatoshi,” Kita says, holding up his notebook. “I have the notes from our recorded matches that you wanted. Would you like to take a look at them with me over lunch?” 

“Yes.” 

Kita’s lips curl just a little at his quick answer. “Alright. How about the donburi place the next street over? We can walk there together.” 

From this angle, he can see the divot under Kita’s lower lip, and a tiny birthmark right under his chin. “Yes, that sounds good.” 

“I’ll find you at 12.15, then.” 

“Yes.” 

When Kita walks away to attend to something else, Kuroo lets out a low whistle and turns to Wakatoshi with a smirk. “Well then.” 

Sawamura smirks too. “Good luck, Ushijima.” 

They’re behaving like Wakatoshi was just asked out on a _date_ —which he wasn’t. It was just a friendly lunch, nothing more, nothing less. 

But he thanks them anyway, because he knows he’ll need it. 

\- 

The walk to the donburi shop is quiet. Wakatoshi consciously slows his stride to match Kita, who prefers to walk at a sedate pace. When they get there, they find seats at the end of the counter, so Kita sits against the wall and Wakatoshi sits next to him. After they tell the cook their orders, Kita pulls out his notebook and laptop, and proceeds to show Wakatoshi all the moments in his last few matches where he messed up. 

Wakatoshi listens to his measured voice, following Kita’s finger as it points at players on the screen and then to the comments on his notebook, meticulously numbered and marked with the corresponding timestamp. 

When their food arrives, Kita closes the notebook and laptop and sets them aside so they can eat, and they do so in silence. Wakatoshi is usually content to be quiet, but now he wants to talk, just so he can hear Kita respond. 

As he tries to come up with a topic that they can both talk about that’s not volleyball, Kita hums and leans into him a little to look at his bowl. “What did you get?” 

Wakatoshi has to take a moment to get his brain on track. “I like sake don so that’s what I got.” 

“Oh,” Kita says, like Wakatoshi just told him the secret of life. “I don’t think I’ve ever ordered that here. Can I try some?” 

When Wakatoshi wordlessly pushes his bowl closer to him, Kita simply looks up at him and smiles. 

And it’s such a sweet, bright smile that Wakatoshi can do nothing but blink and look away as he feels the back of his neck go hot. 

When he turns back to his own bowl, he sees a piece of chicken from Kita’s bowl sitting jauntily in the space where Kita had taken his salmon. 

“You don’t have to,” he starts, but Kita shakes his head. 

“I took some of yours so it’s fair that you get some of mine. Unless you don’t like chicken?” 

Wakatoshi shakes his head. “I like chicken. Thank you.” 

When they’re done eating, they set their bowls aside. Instead of opening the laptop again, however, Kita puts it in his bag. “I feel like drinking coffee,” he says, slinging his bag over his shoulder. “Would you like to come with me? I’ll buy, since I’m inviting you.” 

It doesn’t even occur to him to refuse, despite knowing that they have to head back to the gym soon. “Sure, I’d like that.” 

“There’s a cafe just down the street,” Kita says, hopping off the stool. “Let’s go there.” 

Wakatoshi merely nods and follows along. “You seem to know a lot of the food places in this area.” 

Kita gives him a sideways smile. “I like to try new things, especially food. Do you want to come with me the next time I go exploring?” 

The offer makes Wakatoshi feel warm. “Yes, if you don’t mind.” 

“I wouldn’t have invited you if I minded, Wakatoshi,” Kita says, and chuckles. It’s a new sound and a completely new expression. Wakatoshi watches, wide eyed. He knows, objectively, that Kita wasn’t as emotionless as people believed, but he’d never imagined he’d see Kita smile at _him_ like that. 

The walk to the cafe is short. Wakatoshi doesn’t particularly want anything, so he offers to find them a table while Kita gets his drink at the register. The cafe is small but well appointed with wrought iron tables and matching chairs. He finds them a spot right next to the wall and settles into a chair. It’s a little cramped; he is big and the furniture was clearly not picked out with the comfort of giant athletes in mind. Wakatoshi considers asking Kita what kind of food he likes, and maybe looking up a new place to invite him to.

Kita arrives with a tray bearing two mugs and a slice of cake, and sets it down on their table. He pushes one of the mugs toward Wakatoshi before sitting down. Their knees bump into each other. Wakatoshi forgets his question. 

“I hope you don’t mind that I picked something for you,” Kita says, picking up his own mug and blowing gently at the foam. His golden eyes peer at Wakatoshi over the green ceramic. “I thought it might be awkward if I’m the only one drinking and eating. And I did say I’d treat you.” 

Wakatoshi picks up his mug by the handle, not with both hands cupping the body like Kita is doing. He thinks the way Kita does it looks more comfortable, but it’s too late to put it down and pick it up the other way, so he sticks with his current hold. 

He takes a careful sip, and still burns his gums just behind his front teeth. 

Kita tuts. “You should let it sit for a bit before you drink it.” 

“Isn’t your drink hot?” He asks, looking at how Kita is drinking his steaming coffee. He blows, then takes a sip, blows, then sips. 

“I’m used to drinking really hot things,” is the answer he gets. 

After a few minutes pass, Wakatoshi ventures to try his drink again. It’s still hot, but it doesn’t burn. The taste is chocolatey and pleasantly bittersweet, but there’s no hint of coffee. 

“Do you like it?” 

Waktoshi takes another sip and nods. “What is it?” 

“It’s hot chocolate made with dark chocolate. Since you can’t have caffeine and don’t like sweets, I thought you might enjoy this.” 

Wakatoshi feels pleased that Kita remembers this from the conversation that happened in the locker room a week ago about everyone’s coffee preferences. “Thank you. I don’t mind eating sweets occasionally but I can’t eat much. I get quickly overwhelmed by the sweetness of many desserts.” 

Kita chuckles. “Yes, you mentioned that.” 

“What kind of food do you like?” Wakatoshi asks, remembering his plan to get to know Kita better. “Do you like sweets?” 

He sips once again and hums. “I do. I like traditional Japanese sweets a lot, but I also like western desserts, like eclairs and cakes and tarts. I don’t think I’ve ever met a sweet that I haven’t liked.” 

Wakatoshi racks his mind for bakeries. He knew there was a good one somewhere in the area, but he couldn’t remember where exactly or what it was called. He could probably ask Tendou. “I know there’s a bakery here that specializes in fruit based desserts. Have you been there?” 

“No, I don’t think I have. What’s it called?” 

“I don’t remember the name,” he says, feeling slightly embarrassed, “but I’m certain my friend knows it. Would you like to go with me sometime?” 

“Wakatoshi,” Kita smiles in his knowing way, setting his cup down to pick up his fork. “Are you asking me on a date?” 

While Wakatoshi’s brain shuts down and reboots, Kita cuts a small sliver of his cake and eats it, golden gaze settled square on Wakatoshi’s stone-like face. 

“I,” he starts, but doesn’t know how to finish. He hadn’t intended for it to be a date, but did he want it to be a date? 

He very much did. 

“I,” he tries again. “I hadn’t intended it to be a date,” he says, looking at Kita closing his lips around his second small piece of cake. “But I’d be very happy if it was.”

Kita slides the fork out of his mouth and smiles easily. “Okay. Ask me again.” 

Wakatoshi clears his throat. “Kita. I like you, as more than a friend. Would you like to go to the bakery with me? As a date?”

“I’d love to.” Kita smiles and bows his head just the littlest bit. “Thank you for asking me.”

The breath leaves Wakatoshi’s lungs in a whoosh of uncoiled tension. 

Kita laughs, the sound low and gentle. “Did you think I would turn you down?”

Wakatoshi thinks it over and shrugs. “I was doubtful.”

“I was waiting for you to ask me,” Kita says, like he’s talking about tomorrow’s training and not blowing Wakatoshi’s mind with every consecutive sentence that comes out of his mouth. “I was going to wait some more, but the bakery sounds great and I didn’t want to let the opportunity pass. Sorry.”

“You don’t have to apologize.” Wakatoshi picks up his mug and gulps some of his chocolate down, trying to hide the redness of his cheeks.

Kita chuckles again, and cuts another dainty piece of the cake. He watches it for a moment before he looks up. “If you don’t mind indulging my impatience some more, I have another request.”

Wakatoshi nods. “Of course.”

“Can the bakery be our second date? Because I’d like it very much if this was our first.” 

Wakatoshi feels a little flip-flop in his chest when he realises what he means. “Of course.”

Kita smiles, looking far too pleased. “Thank you,” he says, and lifts the fork, cupping his other hand under it before extending it toward Wakatoshi. “Would you like a bite?”

Wakatoshi feels like steam is escaping from under his collar as he stares at the piece of cake, the long, slim fork held in Kita’s steady, pale hand, the consideration of his other hand poised to catch any spills, the small, expectant smile tugging Kita’s lips upwards.

Wakatoshi opens his mouth. Kita’s smile curls further, crinkling his eyes. The cake carefully makes its way into his mouth and the fork retreats. 

The cake is sweet and dissolves in his mouth like a vanilla flavored cloud. It tastes like Kita’s smile.

“I like you too, Wakatoshi,” he says.

Wakatoshi doesn’t think he can ever eat cake again without feeling like his head would explode. 

-

“Wakatoshi, do you want to walk home together?”

Kita had been quiet enough when he said it, but the locker room went deathly silent as everyone within earshot looked at Kita’s nonchalant expression, his hand on Wakatoshi’s arm, and Wakatoshi’s rapidly reddening face, and drew the exact same conclusion.

“Oh my god,” Oikawa whispers.

Before chaos can descend, Sawamura’s voice thunders, “Everybody _out!_ If I get delayed locking up because you assholes can’t get your shit together I'm locking you all inside!” 

While everyone double-times it to get out of Sawamura’s way, he tosses a wink at Kita who gives him a little smirk back. Wakatoshi blinks and feels his neck go hot again when Kita curls his hand against his own, pulling him gently along. 

As they walk, they make idle talk, mostly about the different bakeries and cafes in the area that Kita has yet to try. Wakatoshi listens and puts in a word or two every so often, but is mostly quiet, still trying to wrap his head around the fact that he was holding Kita’s warm hand as they walked home, that they’d had their first date just earlier that afternoon, that Kita had _hand fed_ him cake in the middle of the cafe in broad daylight, that Kita had said _‘I like you too’_ while he did it, smiling like he hadn’t effectively killed Wakatoshi dead with just a few words and a crumb of cake. 

They finally reach the apartment, and Kita rubs his knuckles gently and gives his hand a small squeeze before he lets go. 

Wakatoshi’s hand feels cold immediately, the loss a physical feeling in his chest. “Will I see you tomorrow?” he asks. 

Kita smiles. “Of course. I’ll meet you where we usually do.” 

Wakatoshi nods, but makes no move to leave. 

Kita huffs out a little laugh and puts his arms around his shoulders, pulling him into a close, Kita-scented hug. Wakatoshi hums as he hugs back a little tighter than he should. Kita laughs again, nuzzling into his neck before letting go. 

Wakatoshi steps back a pace. “Good night, Kita,” he says, and shores up his courage to give Kita a quick peck on his cheek. 

Before he can straighten, though, a hand cups his cheek gently and a pair of lips find his own. He makes an odd, involuntary sound in the back of his throat as his eyes fall closed. He feels Kita’s closed-mouth laugh and smiles into the kiss. 

Kita pulls back, and Wakatoshi’s eyes flicker open. 

“Good night, Wakatoshi,” he says, patting Wakatoshi’s cheek and carding his hand through his hair with a fond smile that makes Wakatoshi feel warm. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

He nods and watches as Kita waves one last time before entering the building. Then he turns to start walking back to his own place, and his lips stay quirked the whole way there.

Kita Shinsuke wasn’t as predictable as Wakatoshi thought, but he doesn’t mind it one bit.

Because while he usually likes knowing what to expect, he finds that he likes being surprised by Kita much, much better.

**Author's Note:**

> Title from [Warm Blood.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b7C04ZgG154)
> 
> Thank you so much for reading! Comments and Kudos are very appreciated. Find me on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/itsairybro) or talk to me on [curiouscat](https://curiouscat.me/ItsAiryBro)!


End file.
